JSNN building receives excellence award

Joint School building on the south campus of the Gateway University Research Park.

Congratulations to the Joint School of Nanoscience and Nanoengineering — its brand-new building has been honored with the Star Award as 2012′s most outstanding new construction project in North Carolina.

The award is presented annually by the Construction Professionals Network of North Carolina.  The JSNN building won in the over $20 million category.  The other category, under $20 million, also was won by a Greensboro project, the International Civil Rights Center and Museum.

Projects are selected on their merits and challenges.  Criteria include the project’s outcome, overall project management, quality management, cost management, schedule management, project complexity, and innovation and creativity.

Advaero’s technology from A&T gaining notice

The current issue of Composites Manufacturing magazine includes a report on Advaero Technologies’ “breakthrough” in the manufacture of a new carbon fiber capable of carrying 24,000 pounds in weight.

“Not only would this technology make composites competitive against metals, it could be an entry card for applications in new markets,” the magazine reports.

Advaero licenses its technology from N.C. A&T.  It was developed by Advaero co-founder Dr. Ajit Kelkar, A&T faculty member in the College of Engineering and chair of the Department of Nanoengineering at the Joint School of Nanoscience and Nanoengineering.

Local manufacturing rises, aided by A&T, JSNN

Joint School of Nanoscience and Nanoengineering

The News & Record editorializes about the Greensboro Partnership’s 2012 State of the City Report:

“Manufacturing increased its share of Greensboro’s workforce from 11.1 percent in 2009 to 11.5 percent in 2010. At the same time, average pay in that sector rose by 5.3 percent to $54,017.

“This is one of the industry segments economic development leaders have focused on for years, with considerable help from the education community. Programs at GTCC, the Joint School of Nanoscience and Nanoengineering, even Guilford County Schools’ recent decision to place a STEM school — science, technology, engineering and math — at N.C. A&T, are critical efforts to provide skilled workers for a rejuvenated manufacturing sector.”

Advaero: Trial of carbon composite successful

Advaero Technologies, a nanotechnology spin-off of the N.C. A&T College of Engineering, has successfully completed initial trials of “a revolutionary carbon composite product,” the company has announced. The product is designed to make aircraft components lighter and less expensive.  It uses a new fabric technology and a new resin infusion process from Advaero.

“Utilizing Advaero’s novel resin infusion process, the higher strength-to-weight performance of this new composite and the projected lower processing costs are significant – making it particularly attractive and potentially a ‘game changer’ in the manufacture of commercial aircraft components,” the company said.

Advaero is working on the project with Stanford University’s Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics and Chomarat Textile Industries.  Dr. Ajit Kelkar, an A&T engineering professor and chairman of the Department of Nanoengineering at the Joint School of Nanoscience and Nanoengineering, was a founder of Advaero.  The company is located at the Gateway University Research Park, South Campus.

The complete announcement is here.

$3.5 million for nanoengineering research

Three A&T nanoengineering professors at the Joint School of Nanoscience and Nanoengineering (JSNN) have been awarded research grants totaling $3.5 million.

“The Department of Nanoengineering is off to a fast start in research,” said Dr. James Ryan, dean of the JSNN.  “Competing successfully for $3.5 million in research funding in the department’s first year and a half of operation is a tribute to both the quality of these researchers and the value of their work.”

The awards are:

• “Computational Modeling and Enabling Technologies for Nano and Bio Systems and Interfaces,” $1.2 million from the Army Research Office. Dr. Ajit Kelkar, professor and chairman of the Department of Nanoengineering, is the principal investigator. This research will focus on the computational modeling of nano and bio systems and interfaces. It will explore the molecular-level interaction of material systems and biological constituents through molecular nano modeling.
•  “Nano to Continuum Multi-Scale Modeling of Cementitious Materials under Dynamic Loading,” $1.8 million from the Army Research Office.  Dr. Ram Mohan, associate professor of nanoengineering, is the principal investigator. This project will focus on the nano-to-continuum modeling of hierarchical and nanoengineered cementitious materials. Project research efforts will enable the better understanding of the performance of cementitious-based protection materials for defense and civilian uses and will help to develop advanced cementitious concrete panels. For more on Mohan’s research, see the coverage inThe Business Journal.
•  “A Study of GaAsSb (gallium arsenide antimonide) Nanowires by Molecular Beam Epitaxy for Near Infrared Applications,” $563,497, from the Army Research Office.  Dr. Shanti Iyer, professor of nanoengineering and electrical engineering, is the principal investigator.  This research will focus on semiconductor nanowires, the building blocks for next-generation integrated nanosystems. The project will focus on the synthesis of GaAsSb-based heterostructure nanowires on silicon by molecular beam epitaxy for the fabrication of infrared lasers and photodetectors.  The research will potentially lead to efficient, inexpensive, flexible, portable, and tunable lasers for infrared countermeasures, integrated sensor/detection systems, and other areas of photonics.

JSNN grand opening, tours tomorrow (December 8)

One last reminder and we’ll stop talking about it: The open house at the Joint School of Nanoscience and Nanoengineering will be held Thursday, December 8, 9 am to 3 pm. The school is located at 2907 East Lee Street in Greensboro, just north of Interstate 40.  Your personal invitation is on the JSNN website: jsnn.ncat.uncg.edu/grand-opening-ceremony/.

JSNN students move into the new building

Dean Ryan fires up his students as they get ready to move into the Joint School of Nanoscience and Nanoengineering building on Friday. More photos are on the JSNN Facebook page.  For more photos of the building, see this photo album, also on the Facebook page.

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JSNN building complete; tours to be given Dec. 8

The Joint School of Nanoscience and Nanoengineering (JSNN) building at Gateway University Research Park south campus.

Construction of the Joint School of Nanoscience and Nanoengineering building has been completed (on time and on budget!). The building is located in the Gateway University Research Park south campus at 2907 East Lee Street.

A public open house is scheduled for Thursday December 8, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. The event will include tours of the facility.  Visitors will be able to get a look at several labs, including the CAVE Automatic Virtual Environment, the cleanroom, the Genomics Lab, the Nuclear Magentic Resonance Lab, and the Thermochemistry Lab.

The grand opening and ribbon-cutting for the building will be held on Wednesday December 7.  Speakers at the invitation-only event will include state government and academic leaders, including Gov. Bev Perdue, UNC President Tom Ross and the chancellors of N.C. A&T and UNC, Dr. Harold Martin and Dr. Linda Brady, respectively.  The school is operated by the two universities.

Nanoengineering Ph.D. program wins final OK

Congratulations to Dean Jim Ryan, the Joint School and the College of Engineering: The UNC Board of Governors has unanimously approved N.C. A&T’s proposal to establish a doctoral program in nanoengineering at the Joint School of Nanoscience and Nanoengineering.

Ryan says the first students will enroll for the Spring 2012 semester.  The approval rounds out the set of degree programs offered at the school — a doctorate and research master’s in nanoengineering, offered by A&T, and a doctorate and professional master’s in nanoscience offered by UNCG.

Editorial recognizes A&T green energy research

One more media note: A News & Record editorial on Sunday singled out green energy research as a key investment for Greensboro’s economy.  The editorial noted the volume of research conducted by the School of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences, work of A&T researchers to help the Proximity Hotel gain its Platinum LEED certification, A&T spinoff company Advaero Technologies and Dr. Abolghasem Shahbazi’s work in alternative energy, among other projects.  Some nice recognition for one of the particularly strong areas of research at N.C. A&T.